... No seriously.
I have to admit I've missed blogging. Not that I ever kept up with it very well.
Missions are weird.
Missionaries are weirder.
I've never felt more like myself and I've never felt more like a stranger. It's the best feeling though. I'm learning so much about myself and about the world around me. I'm being refined and sculpted into the person I was meant to be. This was never my plan, but this was obviously Heavenly Father's plan.
I get a lot of questions from future missionaries asking for advice. First of all, I tip my hat to those of you preparing to serve. Today is my four month mark of being a missionary, so I'm not the most qualified to be giving missionary advice. I still feel like i just got here. But if I could give you any advice, it would be this:
+ Take all your expectations and throw them out the window. Go into the MTC ready to face the unexpected and willing to do whatever God has prepared for you. He knows you better than you know yourself. He knows your needs and he knows your weaknesses. Trust him to take care of you.
+ Study. Study. Study. Read the Book of Mormon. Read the Bible. Read Preach My Gospel. Become familiar with the doctrine that you're going to be teaching. Gain a testimony of it. Read every day. There is power that comes from daily scripture study and you will be able to feel it.
+ Pray. Every day. Every morning. Every night. When you need help. When you want to give thanks. Prayer is your only direct link between you and Heavenly Father. Take advantage of that! Develop a relationship with your Heavenly Father. He wants to hear from you! He loves you and wants to help you. He's going to be your biggest support system for the next 18 months/2 years.
+ Lose yourself in the work. It sounds so cliche, but there's a reason it's cliche. Because it's true. It's hard to lose yourself in the work. Trust me, I know. Presiden Ezra Taft Benson said, "I have often said one of the greatest secrets of missionary work is work! If a missionary works, he will get the Spirit; if he gets the Spirit, he will teach by the Spirit; and if he teaches by the Spirit, he will touch the hearts of the people and he will be happy. There will be no homesickness, no worrying about families, for all time and talents and interests are centered on the work of the ministry. Work, work, work—there is no satisfactory substitute, especially in missionary work."
+ Be yourself. Heavenly Father knows you. He knows your strengths, your weaknesses, your quirks. He has called you on a mission for a reason. It is not by chance that you've been called to your designated place. Someone out there needs you. Not a robot missionary, not someone who is perfect, not the other missionaries who might seem more experienced and confident than you. Someone needs you. Your strengths. Your weaknesses. Your quirks. This person might be one of your companions, someone in the ward you serve in, a stranger you meet on the street, you never know. But Heavenly Father needs you. He's made us different and unique and he wants us to use those differences to their full capability. He didn't call 100,000 Sister Martindales. He's called 1 Sister Martindale, 1 Sister Calder, and 1 of you.
Missions are hard, I won't deny it. But they're worth it. You will never learn more about yourself and you will never have a better opportunity to forget about yourself. Elder Holland said, "I am convinced that missionary work is not easy because salvation is not a cheap experience. Salvation never was easy. We are The Church of Jesus Christ, this is the truth, and He is our Great Eternal Head. How could we believe it would be easy for us when it was never, ever easy for Him?"
I came on a mission hoping to show some gratitude for the things my Father in Heaven has given me, but over the last 4 months he has blessed me so much and I am even more indebted to him. I'm so grateful for the opportunity I've had to serve a mission. It hasn't been easy. From the very beginning, it was hard. But I would never take it back for the world.
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